To ask the Scottish Government for what reason £212,500 was provided to Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCOJEC) between 2017-18 and 2020-21 as part of the Promoting Equality and Cohesion Fund; what this funding was used for, and what the outcomes were of the Empowering, Engaging, and Connecting Diverse Communities project.
The Promoting Equality and Cohesion Fund initially ran from 2017 to 2020, and was then extended to October 2021 due to the impacts of covid-19. It was superseded by a revised funding programme: the current Equality and Human Rights Fund.
The Promoting Equality and Cohesion Fund was used to fund projects that would contribute to one or more of four outcomes:
- Discrimination against people who share protected characteristics is reduced and multiple discrimination is addressed so that barriers to participation are reduced.
- People covered by hate crime legislation experience lower levels of hate crime.
- People and communities are supported to participate in and engage with services and civic society; their contribution is recognised, and community cohesion is increased.
- Current imbalances in representation in all aspects and levels of public life, including education and employment are addressed to better reflect our communities
The Empowering, Engaging, and Connecting Diverse Communities project was funded to support the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCOJEC) to improve understanding by providing public bodies and others with evidence about matters that affect Jewish people, and promoting accurate education about Jews and Judaism; and to build capacity of Jewish people by engaging them through networks, newsletters, events, mutual support, to improve resilience to hate crime, increase confidence, safety, and involvement in Scottish society. As well as to expand volunteering and empower minority communities to engage in civic society.
The specific outcomes to be achieved were:
- Improved community cohesion and safety: people with Jewish heritage feel better supported, networks are strengthened, people feel better able and more confident in reporting antisemitic hate crime, and the Jewish Community as a whole is more cohesive and resilient.
- Education and community cohesion: accurate, authoritative, and engaging educational materials about Jews, Judaism, and the Jewish Community are available for schools, teachers, and community groups; and accurate information is provided for, and accessed by, government, public authorities, other communities and the media.
- Participation and representation: Minority communities will be better informed about policy matters and better able to engage effectively with public bodies, including Government, in order to tackle racism and inequality, promote the rights and political empowerment of those communities to influence policy and service delivery, and to support the effective implementation of the public sector equality duty. Since evident that the resource is produced by a Jewish organisation, it will also engender positive feelings towards the Jewish community, and thus contribute to improved community relations and a reduction in antisemitic attitudes.
The Fund was managed on a day to day basis on the Scottish Government’s behalf by Impact Funding Partners initially and then Inspiring Scotland. You can find a Final Progress Update report for the Fund summarising its impacts here: Promoting-Equality-and-Cohesion-Fund-Final-Report-Jan-Sep-2021-for-SG-publication.pdf
